Hemp has a very recent and interesting history
in the Rockford, Illinois area.

The story starts in 1937 when marijuana was
outlawed. Since America
law enforcement was unable to tell the difference between hemp
and
marijuana hemp growing was outlawed.

Let jump forward to 1942. America is in a
war with Japan and Japan has cut the US of A off from Asian hemp
supplies from the Philippines and Java. Hemp was essential at
that time for making naval ropes because of its long fibers, strength,
and strength when wet. In addition it resisted rot and mildew
making it relatively long lasting in a very harsh environment
ranging from the frozen Arctic to the tropical Pacific.

The American response was to forget about hemp/marijuana
prohibition and grant special licenses to mid-west farmers to
grow hemp. In addition to educate and encourage farmers a film
"Hemp for Victory" was made by the agriculture department
to explain how important hemp was to the war effort and to encourage
farmers to plant it.

Now we get closer to Rockford. A pilot plant
built in Polo, Illinois in Ogle County was to serve as a center
for hemp production in the surrounding area. It was expected
that 42 hemp mills would be needed in the mid-west and 11 in Illinois.

The first harvest was in 1943. Because much
of the machinery was untested and the hemp tangled the machinery
started breaking down. Production suffered and yet had to be
completed before the end of harvest season. With a war on and
labor at peak demand where could the Agriculture Department turn
to fill its labor needs?

It turns out that Camp Grant in Rockford had
quite a few German prisoners of war from the African campaign
who were brought in by bus to help harvest the hemp. By January
6th of 1944 fifty-two truck loads of hemp had been brought to
the hemp mill. One hundred and fifty one tons of fiber total
were delivered to spinning mills on the East coast. The hemp
brought a little over ninety-three dollars an acre.

By 1944 the government started closing the
hemp plants because of the availability of alternate supplies
from Central America and the Mediterranean region. By 1945 the
Hemp for Victory Program was over.